


The Soldier In The Cage

by megsblackfire



Series: We Are Pack [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Blood, Hurt/Comfort, Mild Gore, Werewolf AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-14 04:00:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7997806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/megsblackfire/pseuds/megsblackfire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Humanity is at war with werewolves that have banded together to wipe out anyone that does not have the lycan-gene in their blood. Armies of human and werewolves have moved to eliminate those that would slaughter the innocent, but humanity has forgotten who their allies are. Atrocities have been committed on both sides and it will only get worse.</p><p>Captain Jack Morrison is tasked with keeping a werewolf caged and secured while awaiting transport. The only problem is that the werewolf was one of their soldiers. How can he possibly accept sending one of their own in to be tortured and experimented on?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Werewolf AU everyone. This is part one of a larger series that may take some time to get through. *insert the "but don't you have two other series on the go" questions here and me flailing at you to HUSH*  
> This is basically the "Omnic Crisis has been replaced with *insert random thing here*" type of AU. Instead of omnics ganging up on humanity, it's a bunch of massive furry tanks.

Captain Jack Morrison stared at the trembling form in the cage and did his best not to let his emotions show. Ana Amari, his second in command, spat at the cage, snarling something in Egyptian and Jack was happy he didn’t understand. He might have done something rash if he had, like slam her head against the bars of the cage for being so disrespectful. The rest of the soldiers under his command were staring at the beast inside the cage, fear and hatred waring on their faces.

“And the orders for his care?” Jack asked.

“They didn’t give us any,” Ana replied. “This thing is just supposed to sit here until someone shows up with a transport to get it back to base. After that, I hope they open it up while it is still alive.”

Jack frowned at Ana’s brutal statement, but nodded. “Get camp set up. I want a perimeter line set up and patrolled every hour. I don’t want any other werewolf coming in to save this one,” he ordered. “And bring my meals up here; I’ll keep watch over the prisoner for the night.”

“Understood, sir,” Ana saluted before she turned and started issuing orders.

Jack watched her leave before he turned back to look at the trembling black-furred werewolf. Bright yellow eyes watched him from where the poor soul was cowering in the back of the cage. His chest was heaving and dark red blood trickled slowly out of the wound on its back. Jack could just make out the shape of an inhibitor embedded in the poor beast’s flesh; how scared had this werewolf been that they had risked the inhibitor killing them to change forms?

“You don’t deserve to be in there,” Jack sighed in Wolf as he rested his arm on the cage. “You’re one of us, not those monsters that’ve been terrorizing the world.”

The werewolf’s ears perked forward at the sound of his voice, but they didn’t move from where they were cowering. Jack rubbed at his eyes, resting his plasma rifle on the ground. He was growing increasingly frustrated with his superior officers; they were constantly killing their own men just because they were werewolves. Somehow, the rhetoric had gone from eliminating the werewolves that had banded together across the world to wipe out all non-lycans to eliminating ALL werewolves regardless of allegiance. It was madness, but his concerns fell on deaf ears because of one letter on his profile.

Next to the list of known genetic modifications was a large black “W”. To anyone else that didn’t work in the military, it could mean anything. To his superiors, it marked him as a potential hazard, someone that they had to keep on a short leash at all times. He was a catalyst for the enemy, a werewolf in the ranks, and he knew that any misstep would find him in the same cage as the black-furred werewolf waiting whatever hellish experiments the governments deemed necessary to wining the war. He was given promotions only because he was incredibly efficient and talented. He knew that if he wasn’t, he would have died a long time ago.

He didn’t think Ana knew; probably thought the straps around his chest and back were gun holsters. She didn’t know about the inhibitor digging in between his shoulder blades at all times. She didn’t know that he had to fight his transformations every second of the day to keep from being killed by the small metal disk driving itself into his flesh. No one that wasn’t a werewolf could understand how terrifying and torturous it was to have to stay in human form at all times.

They needed to run and play and hunt, but the inhibitor prevented that. It kept them locked in human form, fighting every natural instinct that demanded attention. It was worse than boot camp, worse than weeks trekking through swamps in South America and contracting malaria. It was a living nightmare and there was nothing he could do to make it stop.

He heard movement in the cage and watched the werewolf slowly move towards him. He took a half-step back, eyeing his caged brethren carefully. He knew how fast a werewolf could attack and he didn’t want to have to be patched up because his face got torn open by a frightened and territorial werewolf. The werewolf stopped a few inches from the cage door and whimpered, pressing his large black nose between the bars.

“I want to let you out,” Jack murmured as he reached up and gently pressed his palm against the pad of the werewolf’s nose. “But someone else will just find you and they’ll kill you on sight.”

The werewolf whined and pressed his long fingers against the plexiglass between the bars. “Soldier,” the werewolf whined in Wolf. “Hurt. Why?”

Jack shook his head. “I don’t have answers, my friend,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

“Good soldier,” the werewolf whined. “Kill lots of idiots. Captain liked me. Why hurt?”

Jack felt tears welling up in his eyes. They had broken the werewolf before they dropped him off in his camp; he was speaking like a five year old. He wanted to rip the doors off the cage and pull the werewolf into a hug, to soothe away the fears and help lick his wounds clean. This wasn’t right; this werewolf had been one of their own! He didn’t deserve to be caged and beaten and left to deal with the fragmented pieces of his mind.

Jack shook his head and pushed his fingers further into the cage, stroking slowly over the short fur of the werewolf’s muzzle. The werewolf pressed closer, shoving his head against the bars so that Jack could scratch at the thick black fur.

“Good boy,” Jack murmured softly. “You were such a good soldier. I’m so sorry.”

The bright yellow eyes followed him and tears welled up. The werewolf tipped his head back and let out a long moaning howl of misery.

“Why?” he howled. “Lost. Hurt. Why?”

Jack sank to his knees and braced his head against the plexiglass as tears fell down his face. He wasn’t Pack and he couldn’t give the werewolf the answers he wanted or needed. The howling continued, the werewolf screaming for packmates that would never answer. It tore at Jack’s heart; this was wrong. This was so wrong; how could they do this to their soldiers and think they were helping!?

The howl cut off with a sharp yelp and Jack looked up in surprise. A dart was sticking out of the werewolf’s throat, the bright yellow fluff on the end twitching as the werewolf scrambled backwards. He thrashed in his cage, wailing in fear as the tranquilizer slowly took control. The yellow eyes rolled backwards in the werewolf’s head before he sank to his knees and flopped over in the cage.

“Are you alright, Captain?” Ana asked as she knelt down beside Jack.

He reached out and grabbed her by the front of her uniform, hauling her up until their noses were inches from each other. “Don’t you EVER shoot him again,” he snarled. “He was one of ours; you show him the proper respect or I will have your tags, do you understand Amari?!”

Ana stared at him in shock and disbelief. “He’s a werewolf,” she gaped. “They’ve torn this country apart!”

“He,” Jack snarled as he pointed to the unconscious form, “was one of us. He helped protect this country and a number of other ones as well. He’s a soldier, Amari. One of our own.” He gave her a shove and turned away. “Get out of my sight.”

Ana stared at him for a long time before she shook her head. “Have you forgotten what those things have done?” she demanded. “They have no loyalties to anyone but themselves.”

“Leave,” Jack growled, not looking at his SIC.

 He knew that if he did, there was no way of knowing what he would do in his fury. He did not want to hurt her; she was a good friend. He just wished that she could see past her hatred for werewolves and take pity on the one in the cage.

She left without another word. One of the Privates brought Jack his evening meal, eyeing the stirring werewolf nervously. Jack thanked the young man and sat down in front of the cage, moving the lumps of potato in the stew around with his spoon.

“Captain, was that werewolf howling for its Pack?” the Private asked quietly.

“In a way,” Jack replied. “I don’t think there are any surviving members. He’s just a lost soul, Private. Leave him be.”

“Yessir,” the young man saluted before scrambling away.

Jack waited until he heard the werewolf moving around before he glanced over his shoulder. “When was the last time you ate?” he asked.

The werewolf paused and looked down at his long fingers. “Days,” he growled. “Why make sleep?”

“Amari likely thought you were calling for back-up,” Jack said. “She doesn’t know how to speak Wolf.”

“Stupid bitch,” the werewolf growled. “Go home to pup.”

Jack chuckled before he fished out a chunk of beef. “Here; it’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.”

The werewolf padded forward carefully before sticking his nose through one of the small slits in the plexiglass. Yellowed fangs nipped eagerly at the chunk of beef before his tongue tried to wrap around the offering. The werewolf let out a low whimper of frustration before Jack carefully shoved the chunk of meat between the teeth.

“Never been handfed, huh?” he asked.

“No,” the werewolf growled as he swallowed the chunk of beef. “No flavour.”

“Yah, camp rations suck,” Jack agreed. “Could use some rosemary.”

“Chili powder,” the werewolf snickered. “Maybe jalapeños.”

“That sounds like a digestive nightmare,” Jack laughed. He fished out a potato and pushed it through the bars. “Probably a good thing the stew is flavourless if the alternative is to give soldiers indigestion and liquid shits.”

The werewolf carefully took the chunk of potato from Jack’s fingers and chewed it between his molars. “Pansies.”

“And you’re so tough,” Jack teased.

The werewolf thumped his chest proudly, yellow eyes flashing. “Good fighter. Strong wolf. Name spoken with fear.”

“Would love to meet your commanding officer and see what he thinks of those claims,” Jack smirked as he spooned some broth into his mouth.

“She,” the werewolf corrected. “Smart woman. Very brave. Safe life.” The werewolf folded his ears down against his head and whimpered. “She hurt too.”

“I’m sorry,” Jack murmured as he reached up to fit his fingers through the bars.

The werewolf pressed his head against the pads of Jack’s fingers. “Not your fault,” the werewolf smiled. “Good leader. Strong alpha. Soldiers trust.” The black tail wagged slowly. “Want to follow.”

“Wish I could honour that request,” Jack sighed. “Captain Jack Morrison.”

The werewolf tilted his head. “No rank. Just Gabriel.”

“Nice to meet you, Gabriel. Wish it were under better circumstances.”

Gabriel wagged his tail again. “Full moon and open fields,” he murmured. “Play all night.”

“I’d have liked that,” Jack smiled. “Maybe when this war is over.”

“War never over,” Gabriel whined as he laid down. “Always other war. Always more hurt. No end. Hate people. No want to protect no more.”

“I know,” Jack murmured as he stroked slowly over the soft black fur. “I know.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Are you out of your mind?” Ana demanded. “You want to get into the cage with that, that thing? After it’s torn the medic apart?”

“We need to get his remains,” Jack sighed as he placed his jacket over the arm of the chair in his personal tent. “And you would attack too if someone you didn’t know or trust stepped into the only space that is yours.”

“I can’t believe you’re defending that thing,” Ana growled. “It just killed one of our soldiers!”

“And how many of our soldiers were killed when high command carpet bombed us in France?” Jack demanded as he rounded on Ana. “Hmm? Or do their lives not mean anything because they were werewolves? Think, Ana; this war started because of people treating werewolves like shit, hunting them down and making examples of them. If we keep treating them like that, this war will never end and it will only escalate until it really is werewolves against humans. Humans will lose, Ana, if that ever happens.”

Ana lifted her chin but didn’t argue as he stalked past her. He walked up the hill to where Gabriel’s cage was, ignoring the fearful looks of his soldiers. They were all scared and Jack didn’t blame them. The screams of the dying medic had been horrific and Gabriel’s snarls had been even worse. Jack didn’t know if Gabriel would attack him, but he would be damned if he didn’t try to get the medic’s body back before Gabriel’s instincts told him to eat the carcass.

Gabriel was pacing at the back of his cage, fur bristled and drool dripping between his teeth. His tail was tucked tightly between his legs and Jack could see the whites of his eyes as the yellow irises spun towards him. The medic was lying in the middle of the cage, his spine snapped in half and belly sliced open. He smelt horrid, but Jack was determined to get to his and send his remains home.

“Open the cage,” he ordered to the soldier he’d left to guard Gabriel.

“But sir,” the soldier stuttered.

“Open. The. Cage,” Jack growled.

The soldier saluted and fumbled with her keys. She turned the lock over and carefully pushed the door open just enough for Jack to squeeze through.

Gabriel froze and turned to look at him. Jack stood in front of the door, hands loose at his sides, and waited. Gabriel’s yellow eyes moved from him to the door before he put his weight on his hands and snarled.

“My territory,” Gabriel snarled. “Mine! Leave!”

“I will,” Jack promised before he pointed to the dead medic. “I just need him first.”

Gabriel looked at the medic and let out a long whine. “Didn’t mean to. Scared. Needles. Always hurt.”

“I know you didn’t mean to, Gabriel,” Jack soothed. “Let me get his body. I’ll leave right after.”

“Okay,” Gabriel whimpered. “Good Alpha. I trust.”

He hunkered down in the left corner of the cage, his yellow eyes staying on Jack as he moved. Jack took a deep breath before he picked the broken body up. He tried not to be sick as the medic’s intestines spilled out over the floor of the cage. He gagged, closing his eyes and willing himself to keep moving. He turned around, giving Gabriel more than enough time to attack, but he never did.

Jack left the cage with the body and set it down on the ground for the rest of the medics to deal with. He doubled over and coughed, struggling not to be sick. He spat out a mouthful of saliva and shook his head, straightening up with a groan. It never got easier seeing bodies like that, no matter the horrors he had endured. The soldier standing guard let out a sharp squeak before scrambling away from the cage, rifle coming up to point at Gabriel.

Gabriel pressed himself against the bars of the cage, whimpering and whining. Jack watched as Gabriel twisted, rubbing the inhibitor against the slots in the cage. He stepped forward, signalling the solider to be on standby.

“Open the door,” he ordered as he pushed his fingers into Gabriel’s fur.

“Sir, it’s right there!” the soldier stammered.

“Open the door,” Jack snapped. “You want him to calm down? We get that damn inhibitor out of his flesh. Now.”

The soldier struggled to comply, hands shaking as she opened the door again. Jack stepped in and up to Gabriel, pushing his fingers fully into the black fur. Bright yellow eyes snapped open and Jack stared down into the terrified depths. It would take nothing for Gabriel to kill him the same way he had killed the medic. Jack trusted him not to, knew in his heart that Gabriel would never harm anyone that didn’t threaten him first. It had been a mistake and the medic had paid the price for Jack’s slip in diligence.

“Hurt,” Gabriel whimpered.

“You need to be still,” Jack instructed as he scratched his fingers through the thick black fur. “I’m going to get that inhibitor out of you.”

“Hurt,” Gabriel repeated.

“It’ll hurt a lot,” Jack nodded. “But it’ll feel better once it’s out. I need you to be brave for me, Gabriel. Can you do that?”

Gabriel nodded his head before he pressed his belly against the bottom of the cage. He clamped his hands tightly over his head, whimpering as Jack carefully scaled the wall of fur. He settled himself between Gabriel’s shoulder blades, bracing his boots against the wide hips. He pushed through the blood-matted fur, searching for the device that was embedded in the dark flesh.

His fingers found globs of coagulated blood and the edge of the inhibitor. He probed the edge, gritting his teeth as Gabriel wailed in pain. He dug his fingers into the wound, whispering apologies to Gabriel as the werewolf snarled and bucked beneath him. He squeezed his knees into Gabriel’s sides before he got his fingers firmly around the inhibitor and wrenched it out.

He was violently thrown from Gabriel’s back. The wind was knocked out of his lungs as he hit the floor. He stared sightlessly up at the ceiling, blinking dizziness away as Gabriel thrashed and screamed around the inside of the cage. Jack held the inhibitor loosely in his hand, coughing as he tried to refill his lungs.

“Captain!”

Jack froze as Gabriel’s face loomed over his. Yellowed teeth parted as the black werewolf snarled down at him. He raised a hand, signalling for the soldier to not shoot. One bullet might just spell the end of Jack’s life.

“Hurt,” Gabriel snarled down at him.

“I got it out,” Jack said as he held up to rusted inhibitor. “Wound should heal up now.”

Gabriel snarled and wrenched the inhibitor out of Jack’s hand. He slammed it repeatedly against the floor, busting the device beyond recognition before hurling it at the door. He roared, rearing up onto his hind legs and splaying his hands wide.

It was the roar of a wild animal, all carnal fury and little intelligence. Jack missed being able to roar like that, to howl and alert his Pack to the position of a deer in the cornfields that were home. He missed the look of shock on people’s faces as he reared to his full height to defend them, jowls shaking with the force of his roar. It was such an integral part of being a werewolf and the inhibitor on his back prevented him from obeying that simple instinct.

Protect. Defend. Hunt. It was what werewolves were designed to do.

Jack slowly started to sit up, but froze as Gabriel whipped around. Yellow eyes watched him as Gabriel panted, his chest heaving with each inhale. Slowly, Gabriel moved towards him again, tongue lolling out of his mouth. Jack had a full second to realize what was about to happen before he threw his hands up with a squeak.

“Don’t you…!” he managed to yelp before Gabriel pounced on him.

Jack shouted and laughed as Gabriel covered his face and chest with great slobbering licks. Tears ran down Gabriel’s face as he hugged Jack close, whimpering and sobbing as he continued to show his gratitude.

“Okay, okay, let me up,” Jack laughed as he pushed at the furry chest. “Geeze, you big lug!”

“Friend,” Gabriel wagged his tail as he set Jack down. “Best friend. Jack good Alpha!”

Jack smiled as he ran his hand over Gabriel’s head. “I’m glad you think so. Why don’t you return to your human form now? That inhibitor can’t hurt you anymore and it’ll be easier to tend to your wounds.”

Gabriel shook his head rapidly, turning to snarl at the soldier that had her gun trained on him. “Humans stupid,” Gabriel snarled. “Stupid and weak. No smell, no listen, no care. Stay wolf. Wolf smart; listen, smell. Jack understand.”

“Not all humans are bad,” Jack smiled as he got to his feet. “The actions of the few shouldn’t damn the rest.”

Gabriel shook his head and an amused smile crossed his face. “Jack silly pup,” he teased, curling his lip over his sharp teeth. “Silly, silly pup.”

“Jack, get out of the cage,” Ana snapped. “Please.”

“I’m coming,” Jack rolled his eyes. “Someone bring Gabriel something to eat. You’ll find him much more agreeable without that damn inhibitor in his back.”

“Something to eat?” Ana demanded. “Are you out of your mind?”

“No,” Jack said as he stepped out of the cage. “Something bloody and raw. Preferably a deer, but I’m sure a few chunks of steak will be just fine.”

“You want to feed it after it killed one of our medics?” Ana snapped.

“He didn’t mean to,” Jack sighed as he started walking. “He’s a cornered animal; even a mouse will bite when cornered.”

“One of our medics is dead, Jack!” Ana snarled. “He’s dead because that monster killed him.”

“And how many werewolves have died because high command slapped an inhibitor on their back that burrowed into their flesh when they tried to shift shape?” Jack asked as he turned to face Ana. “How many of our soldiers died in France when that carpet bomb fell? How many soldiers are left to die on the battlefield because they’re werewolves? Don’t start acting righteous over one accidental death when there are thousands of purposeful ones carried out every day.”

“Whose side are you on, Jack?” Ana demanded in a hushed whisper.

“Humanity’s,” Jack said. “But humanity isn’t just humans, Ana. The lycans are human too; they just turn into wolves.”

He turned without another word and headed back to his tent. 


	3. Chapter 3

Jack smiled as he watched Gabriel devour the deer that had been hauled into his cage. His black muzzle was covered in gore, but his tail was wagging excitedly as he tore into the carcass. A simple need met and Gabriel was much more agreeable to having strangers around him.

“How’s the deer?” Jack asked.

“Good!” Gabriel yapped happily before he ripped out a chunk and bounded over to the side of the cage. “Have!”

“I can’t eat raw meat in this form,” Jack chuckled. “You need it more anyways, Gabriel. You’re going to be skin and bones soon.”

Gabriel wolfed the chunk of meat down and let out a happy laugh. “Very strong! Good Beta! Keep other pups in line.”

“I’m sure you were,” Jack smiled as he leaned on the bars. “Want me to come in there and pet you?”

“Yes!” Gabriel laughed before he shuffled backwards, wagging his tail excitedly. “Brush?”

“Don’t think there’s one in camp strong enough to get the snags out of your fur,” Jack confessed as he unlocked the cage door and slipped inside.

Gabriel pouted before he flopped down beside the carcass of the deer and started eating again. It had been a week since Jack had yanked the inhibitor out of Gabriel’s back. He had taken personal charge of the black werewolf’s care, cleaning the cage out twice a day and making sure he had ample supplies of water and food. He had no fear of Gabriel, understanding all of the little quirks the big lug had and knowing how to move safely around him.

He sat down beside Gabriel and slowly started scratching over Gabriel’s flank. He laughed as Gabriel’s tail slapped him in the back of the head. He turned and accepted the belly-flopping werewolf, grunting as he was pinned to the floor beneath the oversized pup. He scratched slowly over Gabriel’s chest, making his way up towards his throat and then around his furry cheeks to scratch behind his ears. Gabriel’s tail thumped happily against the ground.

Jack ran his hand over an old scar, the edges burned and jagged. He sighed softly. “You were in France,” he murmured. “You were caught in that carpet bomb, weren’t you?”

Gabriel let out a soft whimper. “Yes,” he whispered, pressing his head against Jack’s chest. “Lost many friends. Hurt. Not know why. Alpha fight with healers to get me fixed. Hit soldier that tried to kill me.”

Jack closed his eyes and hugged Gabriel close. “Ssh, I’m here,” he soothed.

He remembered that day too well. The order had come through to let the werewolves loose, but Jack’s superior officer refused to remove his inhibitor. He claimed that he needed Jack’s hands on his plasma rifle, not getting his claws caught in some other wolf’s fur. Jack had watched miserably as a tide of werewolves charged the enemy ranks.

They turned the tide in the armies’ favour, breaking the advancing werewolves’ moral until most of them were starting to turn tail and run. Jack remembered crowing, screaming at his brethren to tear some throats for him. He remembered the other captains roaring and cheering, one particular woman standing alone as her entire squad of werewolves tore through the enemy in a wave of blood.

Then orders came through to fall back almost thirty seconds before planes flew overhead and covered the werewolves in napalm and shrapnel. Jack would never forget the sight of terrified werewolves fleeing the flames, screaming and clawing at their fur as it burned all the way down to the bone. Enemy and ally alike were screaming and howling, running in all directions in fear and panic.

The captains started moving, ignoring the one woman who was staring at the scene in horror. Jack stumbled after his captain, his heart in his throat because that could have been him and his captain had saved his life. He was grateful for all of two seconds before his captain put his rifle against the temple of one of their werewolves and killed them.

It was a new type of bloodbath as the werewolves figured out what was happening. The enemy tried to flee and their allies lifted their hands, trying to surrender to teammates that they thought they were friends with. The captain from before took it upon herself to protect the still living member of her team, smashing her rifle into the face of the soldier trying to kill the trembling form that she stood protectively over.

She was screaming for a medic, demanding that her soldier be healed up. She was willing to fight anyone that got close and likely would have wound up dead if Jack and three other soldiers hadn’t decided to back her up. Jack turned his gun on his captain, ordering him to back up and get medical supplies for the surviving soldiers.

He was almost court-marshaled for his insubordination, but the captain he aided put in a good word for him and got him transferred to an international unit instead. He had no idea what happened to the captain, but he believed he had just found the soldier she had been trying to defend.

“You served under Captain Smith, didn’t you?” Jack asked softly.

“Yes,” Gabriel thumped his tail. “She was ood Alpha. Cared for us. Helped us feel welcome. Miss her.”

That only helped confirm his suspicions that the good Captain had been quietly removed to prevent her from stirring the werewolves into a rebellion. He had to keep his own head down to prevent the same thing from happening to him. He just had to help Gabriel to freedom first.

“The plexiglass in the back of the cage is weakest around the slots,” he murmured into Gabriel’s ear.

Gabriel flicked an ear before he lifted his head. “Come with me?” he asked. “Make new pack, far away from nasty humans.”

Jack smiled and shook his head. “No, I have people I still need to keep safe,” he said. “You get yourself to safety. Maybe we’ll meet up again when this war is over.”

Gabriel whined and hugged him close, pressing his nose into Jack’s neck. “Follow you anywhere,” he whispered. “Good Alpha. Strong leader. Not want to lose.”

“There are other Alphas out there, Gabriel,” Jack chuckled and scratched behind the black werewolf’s ear. “You could be your own Alpha.”

Gabriel snorted at the idea before he sat back and cocked his head to the side. He scratched under his jaw with his hind leg, growling as the sharp claws itched something for him.

“You leave,” Gabriel said. “I leave. I see you again. We run together, hunt and kill.”

“So long as the hunting is deer and not people,” Jack smirked as he got to his feet. He hugged Gabriel close to his chest, running his fingers through the black fur. “You take care of yourself, Gabriel.”

“Will,” Gabriel promised as he returned the hug. “Go. Before bitch realizes I gone.”

Jack chuckled and ducked out of the cage. A new guard was moving to replace him, eyeing him nervously as he locked the door behind him. He handed the keys over, instructing the guard to let Gabriel eat in peace; no rattling the bars or slapping the plexiglass.

It was the middle of the night when he woke to the sounds of panic in the camp. He pulled his boots on quickly, grabbing his jacket as he headed out into the camp. Ana came storming over to him the minute he left his tent and dragged him up the hill to Gabriel’s cage.

Jack almost laughed at the sight. Gabriel had thrown the deer carcass through the front of the cage and knocked the guard out. There were bits of fur left on the bars where Gabriel had reached through to steal the key off of the guard. Rather than using the easier to break back, Gabriel had simply let himself out through the front and took off. Jack could see the depressions in the grass where the black werewolf had fled and shook his head.

“There’s no use hunting for him,” he said. “He’ll be long gone before we can even get a search party organized.”

“You planned this, didn’t you?” Ana demanded.

“No, I didn’t,” Jack replied as he checked to make sure the guard was still breathing. “My plan was for him to escape out the back. This is much funnier.”

“You think this is a joke?” Ana snarled. “That werewolf just assaulted our soldier and escaped. It could be planning on tearing a village apart right now!”

“He won’t,” Jack said as he helped the soldier to their feet and pulled their arm over his shoulder. “He’ll go deep into the Black Forest and you won’t see him again.”

Ana’s eyes narrowed and she spat something in Egyptian before she turned and stormed off. Jack shook his head as he hauled the soldier over to the medical tent. He glanced off into the forest around the camp, wondering how far Gabriel was going to run. He smiled a little, hoping Gabriel found another pack to fall in with and recover from his ordeal. He deserved a rest amongst those that would help him.


	4. Chapter 4

Gabriel ran as far as he could for three days before he let himself slow down. His lungs pulled air greedily into his body as he stood in the shadows of the massive pines and spruces. The forest moved quietly around him, full of birdsong and the occasional snap of a twig by some large animal. It smelt unfamiliar and familiar all at the same time and he shivered in delight.

Anything was better than the cage he had been in. Anything was better than smelling his own waste and knowing that anyone else could see and smell it too. Out here there was no one around to see him mark trees or kick dirt. There was no one to judge him or hurt him.

There was also no one to scratch his fur and talk to him. He missed Jack. He missed his beautiful blue eyes and that weird golden hair and that welcoming, sad, tired smile. Jack was a good Alpha; he cared for his soldiers, even the bitch that didn’t know he was a wolf.

He sighed deeply before he tipped his head back and howled. “Lost,” he called. “Lost. Alone.”

He perked his ears forward, waiting to see if there was a response. When none came, he let out a long sigh through his nose. There were so few Packs left in Germany. Most of them had either fled to countries that were taking refugees in, had joined the idiots, or were killed.

He started forward, trotting his way through the forest. He stopped at a few berry bushes and nibbled on the fruit, but it was not the same as the warm taste of blood and meat. He wasn’t a rabbit; he needed to eat meat to survive, even if he could get away with eating fruits and vegetables every now and again.

He paused as he heard a long howl. He perked his ears up, listening carefully to the words.

“Strong pack. Come see.”

He howled in return. “Where?”

“Here!” a new voice shouted.

“Here! HERE!” three others joined in. “Come see!”

He charged forward, following the howling through the forest. He slowed his strides as he crossed a scent line, sniffing at a tree to see what he could learn. He smelt a number of strong males, one female; the Alpha; and one that was giving him confusing signals; pup but not pup? He marked just below their scents, adding his own in case another member of the Pack was waiting behind him to see what his story was.

He trotted forward and came to a stop just short of where a deer carcass was lying half-eaten. The wolves were massive, staring at him with a variety of eye colours. Blues, yellows, one set of red, and a brown pair that were starting to turn milky. He tucked his tail tightly between his legs as he crept forward, trying to figure out which of the impressive wolves was the Alpha.

A female stepped forward, her tail held high above the others and growled at him. He pressed his belly to the ground, showing his throat to her. She smelt like the Alpha, protective and strong with no room for hesitation in her love. Her yellow eyes watched him from her gray face before she wagged her tail.

“You are lost, little soldier,” she said softly. “What are you doing so far from your Pack?”

“No Pack,” Gabriel whined. “All gone.”

Someone gasped behind the Alpha and whispers started flying furiously between the other members. The Alpha glanced over her shoulder before a red-furred wolf trotted forward. He pressed his nose into Gabriel’s shoulder and wagged his tail.

“I welcome you, friend,” the werewolf growled. “Come, share our kill.”

Gabriel wagged his tail and slowly stood up. He kept his tail lower than the red wolf’s, following him over to the deer carcass. A small black wolf growled playfully at him from on top of the carcass, balancing on her hind legs.

“Brother!” she laughed and pounced onto his shoulders, burying her face in his fur. “I am Sombra.”

“Gabriel,” he wagged his tail.

It took him a moment to realize that the other members of the back were trying to keep their tail lower than his, grinning sheepishly at each other as the Alpha sat smirking behind him. Gabriel slowly raised his tail, keeping it below the red wolf’s out of respect, and stared in awe as the other wolves continued to keep their tails low.

He glanced at the Alpha before he wagged his tail. He was a Delta, a warrior for the pack. It was an honour for a packless wolf like him. He whined, wiggling happily before the red wolf bit his scruff playfully and gave him a gentle shake.

“Brother!” the red wolf howled. “I am Reinhardt!”

Gabriel laughed and reached up to cuff Reinhardt’s head. They wrestled beside the carcass, barking and yapping as the other massive werewolves joined in. They tumbled over one another, laughing and howling as they eagerly accepted another sibling into their pack.

Tears streamed down Gabriel’s face as he pinned Sombra to the ground, pulling on her ears as the runt struggled to get loose. His Alpha bumped his shoulder, signalling for him to let the Omega to her feet. Sombra shook herself out, barking happily before she jumped over to the deer and started eating.

Gabriel followed her, sinking his teeth into the soft flesh and tearing out chunks of meat. The others fell into place around them, growling and snapping playfully at each other. They were Pack. He was safe.

He tipped his head back and howled, letting the forest know that he was home and that he was happy. His Pack joined in, howling their joy and freedom to the sky as the sun moved slowly overhead. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone that's read and left kudos.
> 
> I don't know when the next part will be up. I have a lot of projects I have more interest in at the moment. We'll see what happens.


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